An ever increasing use of broadband services has led to an increase in data being carried over mobile networks. This is particularly so as users increasingly expect to be able to access high-speed Internet services on their own mobile devices wherever they travel.
Airline passengers would also like to be able to connect to the Internet when traveling. To meet this demand, a communications link needs to be established between the aircraft and ground while having sufficient capacity to allow for large numbers of passengers to simultaneously connect to the Internet.
Airlines currently providing Internet services to their passenger while in flight typically do so using the geostationary fixed satellite service (FSS). However, a drawback of using satellites is their limited bandwidth, cost of capacity and round-trip delays.
One approach for providing Internet services to airline passengers without the use of satellites is GoGo's air-to-ground communications system that uses ground-based broadband mobile cellular antenna towers that direct their signals at the sky rather than along the ground to provide aircraft connectivity. Similarly, AT&T was teaming up with Honeywell to provide an air-to-ground communications system. Honeywell proposes to build and deliver aircraft hardware needed to connect to AT&T's planned air-to-ground system in the U.S. With this service, passengers will experience global 4G LTE standards.
Yet another approach for providing Internet services to airline passengers without the use of satellites is disclosed in a technical report produced by ETSI Technical Committee Electromagnetic Compatibility and Radio Spectrum Matters (ERM), and referenced as ETSI TR 101 599 V1.1.1 (2012-07). This air-to-ground communications system operates in ISM bands and makes use of adaptive beamforming antennas operating around 2.4 GHz and/or 5.8 GHz. These ISM frequency bands are license exempt. Lufthansa Systems AG has proposed such a terrestrial based direct air-to-ground communications system.
Even in view of the above approaches for providing Internet services to airline passengers, there is still a need to improve on such an ATG communications system.